Inkmoon
by stare at string
Summary: This is a crossover between Inkheart and New Moon. Edward gets read into Meggie's world. Edward's point of view.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight, not me.**

**This takes place in the middle of New Moon. **

Chapter 1

The agony, the place where my heart should be. It hurt, so much that the hole should be visible from the outside. Every time I thought _her _name, it hurt even worse.

_You could just go home._

It was true. I could go home. I could rush to Forks, the only place I would ever call home, and beg Bella to forgive me. It was a nice thought. But Bella deserved a life. Not a soulless eternity with me. A normal life. Without me.

As I sat, utterly heartbroken, somewhere in Europe, something happened. I suddenly wasn't there anymore. I was _somewhere_... but where? I found myself to be standing in a bedroom, where a young girl and an older man with vibrant red hair sat on a bed, holding a dark, black book in their hands. The girl stared at me, appearing as unknowing about how I got here as I was. The man looked at me, almost pitifully. His hair reminded me of one the vampires in the clearing with James... but I shouldn't dwell on that. The flashbacks came quickly now... Bella at the dance studio... Bella lying there, crumpled and broken...

The two people were arguing. I ignored their noises, both mental and physical. Then the girl said my name. I looked up.

"How do you know my name?" I asked, not really caring if I got an answer. All that really mattered, all that ever mattered, was Bella, and only Bella. Which was why, when the stranger spoke her name, I immediately listened.

_How could he leave Bella? _the girl thought.

"What do you want?" I questioned, now much more intent on an answer. "How do you know my name?" My next sentence was softer, almost a whisper. "How do you know..." I trailed off, not mentioning her thought.

_Oh yeah, he can read thoughts. Hi, Edward!_

The red haired man spoke up. I hadn't been paying much attention to him, but I saw, yet again, his look, pitying me. For what?

He turned around and glared at the young girl. "HOW could you do that Meggie! How could you EVER be so..." He couldn't continue and was obviously fuming.

_She's brought another away from its home. He doesn't belong here!_

I stared at the two of them. Their thoughts didn't even make sense to me. Making my voice as menacing as it could be, I stated, "I need answers. Now."

"Umm... I kind of have to explain something first," began the girl named Meggie. "I can read characters out of books. It may be hard to believe, but isn't it just as likely as vampires being real?" Her reference to my best kept secret stunned me into a silence. I motioned for her to go on.

"I just read you out of your book... or world, I guess would explain it better. I--" 

The man with crimson hair cut her off. "She's taken you from everything. Everyone. We're stuck here unless we can find another author to write you back in. Sorry."

I suddenly understood his pitying look, as he recalled his memories of his past adventures. Dustfinger, as I found out was this man's name, thought of his 10 years in this world like my own.

"So... I'm stuck?"

"Yes."

It took me a moment to absorb all of that. Stuck here, never to see Bella again. Never to fill her life with my dark shadows again. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing. Good, I finally decided. But only for _her_. In which case, how I felt about the matter meant nothing. So what if I was missing my other half?

"Okay," I replied. back to my bored, toneless voice.

_He got over that fast_, Dustfinger thought. 

"We've got to find an author," Meggie said. "I guess it's time for another adventure."

"No."

They were stunned into silence. But they started talking quickly afterwards.

"What! Don't you want to go home?"

I sighed. Obviously, I would have to explain.

"If I'm gone, Bella will be happy," It was the most painful sentence I had ever said. Well, not the _most_ painful...

The girl's eyes went wide. She seemed to be sad. She opened her mouth to speak, but Dustfinger silenced her. I could still hear her thoughts, though. And what I heard wasn't something I wanted to hear. I heard her replaying my life in Forks. She somehow knew of everything that had happened in my life since I met Bella.When she remembered the part that happened when I was gone, where Bella had gone to an almost catatonic state,I moaned. Crumpled down onto the floor. For it had all been for nothing. Bella had been hurt because of me. If it were possible, I would have cried.

"What did you do to him!" Dustfinger demanded. "oops..." Meggie whispered.

They may have said more, but I wasn't listening. Realization started to kick in. I knew that I had to get back to Bella, as soon as I could. Even sooner, in fact. But for that, I needed these two strangers' help.

**Now, I am wondering if I should continue this story. I don't know if people will like it, and so if you do, review! If you hate it... review! If you think it's 'different'...review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I got up off the floor. Dustfinger was still confused, I could tell. Meggie looked scared. They were both silent as I tried to pull myself together. Meggie kept repeating _I'm sorry, I'm so sorry_ in her head. When Dustfinger opened his mouth to inquire, I cut him off to answer his unspoken question. 

"The girl did nothing, Dustfinger. I can hear thoughts." He looked amazed as I said his name, but said nothing.  
_He can read my mind? But… Hey, stay out!_

"I'm sorry Dustfinger, but as much as I try not to hear you, I may not be able to block your thoughts completely. Please forgive me. Now, I'm not sure I quite understand how I am to get home. Will you explain further?"  
Meggie stuttered as she started. 

"I-- I, well--- Wait, are you saying you want to go home?"

"Of course."

"Well then, we would have to find an author to write you back in. I suppose I could, but I believe it would work best if your own author did the honors. We could find her, but-"

Dustfinger then cut in. "It worked fine when I was written in, without that old man's help. Feniglio didn't write me back."

"Wouldn't this person find it hard to believe in me? If they think they created me, who is supposedly made of words and ink? Your Feniglio seemed to have gone insane from finding himself in that world."

"She would know how to word it best. When Cheeseface wrote you in, Dustfinger, he had read your book several times. This is my first time reading New Moon."

Dustfinger's thoughts went wild. _How could she start reading a book aloud then? She couldn't even know what would come out of it. What if it had been some monster like the Shadow? What if-_ The images in his mind that went along with the Shadow were terrifying.

"I must agree with Dustfinger on this. How could you even try that, after reading out the Shadow? But I suppose that it is evident that we find this author and have them write some more. How shall we convince her though?"

Meggie spoke again. "Just step into the light. That would make the greatest impact, especially as that was a part of her original dream." Her knowledge of my species once more amazed me. I listened as her thoughts clarified her words. We then began to plan our visit to this woman's house.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

While everyone slept, I decided to find out more about this Meyer lady. It was nighttime, and I had nothing else to do. So I started the girl's computer and went online.

It appeared that Stephenie Meyer had written a series of books: Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse. They were all from Bella's perspective, and they were all about her coming to Forks. Meggie said that I came from New Moon. Which seemed quite impossible. For that would make the book Eclipse about my future. If I read it, _I_, one of the main characters, then I should, in theory, be able to change it.

But the printed book would stay the same. Even Alice's visions are less reliable.

Maybe I just shouldn't think of it. It might confuse me even more. All I could decide was to not read that book. Even though it was tempting. The experience would certainly be interesting… I _could _just read the first book. Then I would truly just be reading documented history. And it was in Bella's point of view. But now we come to the exact reason I shouldn't read it. Bella was glad that I couldn't hear her thoughts. She would hate me for invading her privacy.

Although, she didn't _have_ to know...

NO! That would be absolutely out of the question. I shouldn't want for anything that hurts Bella. Meggie's memory of the story then came back to me. I already had hurt Bella. A lot. I had to get back to her. Which reminded me of what I doing. Trying to gain information so that I could do exactly that. Intending to ignore the thoughts that were running through my head, I tried to concentrate, but made no progress.

What if in that book there was something that would help me? Help me save Bella? If it could spare her from anything else that could cause her pain, then it was my duty to read it.

_No, it's wrong! _

_Maybe it could help.._

_NO! It's wrong!_

_Just a little look.._

_Ugh. No._ For now, no. But the temptation was nearing the point where it was as hard to resist as Bella's blood.

I went back to searching for anything that could relate to Stephenie Meyer. I looked on her website, scanning her bio and reading her calendar of events to see where she would be. I looked on Twilight Lexicon, and then I reached the fan fiction. shudder This was insane. I couldn't believe what some obsessed people wrote about me. It seemed like every one of them thought they were in love with me. Those who weren't thought up some really strange positions for me and my love to be in. And I had thought that Jessica's fantasies were unbearable. There were even some where I was human.

It was .. well.. I don't know how to explain how it felt, having your own fan sites from people in a different world who never even knew me. It's unnerving to see thousands of pictures of yourself, all creepily accurate and done by someone that had never seen you. There were songs and poems about my life, and Bella. I was tempted to go on some of the forums and tell them _exactly_ what I would do in certain situations. I was utterly relieved when I heard an alarm clock go off down the hall. I was glad for an excuse to get off the internet.


	4. Chapters 4 and 5

Chapter 4

We got set to execute our plan. The idea was to go to Stephenie's house (where luckily it is really sunny) and step into the light, and then we tell her about our problem and ask for help. She would love to help her favorite character! Maybe it would work...

**Chap. 4 is really short, so here's another chapter:**

Chapter 5

Well, it sounded like an reasonable plan to begin with. Here's what really happened...

Meggie, Dustfinger, and I got on a plane to go to Mrs. Meyer's place. As I shook everyone else to wake them from their naps, I looked for the first time out my window. Just perfect. It was raining. Our plan was starting to crumble. Just off the plane, and we had to work on a new idea.

Meggie gazed outside at the rain from the window of the hotel room we were in, almost begging it to go away. Dustfinger was muttering about how Meggie should have never started this. No one was truly listening to him. It was getting really tiring to sit with these people, in some unknown place, not even trying to make a new tactic up. 

"Is anyone trying to think of something else? Meggie, how fast can you read, _to yourself_? If you could finish those books, at least, maybe we could come up with some new information," I asked her, desperate to get home.

"Umm...well... I'm a pretty slow reader. I think that option is out. If you want to get home in years, I guess I could."

I cringed at the thought. _Bella, I had to save Bella_. If only there was anything useful on those sites I was reading. Hmm... 

Nope. Nothing but the fact that she would know me inside and out. That sparked inspiration, though. I quickly told my brilliant plan to them, and we decided to execute it tomorrow. At least then we might have sunlight. That would be simpler, and much quicker than my idea.

The next day, our plan began. Meggie walked up to Stephenie Meyer's door and knocked. A lady open the door, and looked out. I was hidden behind a tree in her yard. The sunlight still hadn't come out, so we settled for plan B. I listened in on the conversations, the mental one included.

"Hello, Mrs. Meyer. My name is Meggie. I've read your books, and I thought there was someone you might like to meet."

_She says there's someone she wants me to meet, and yet she's alone..._ thought Stephenie.

_Edward! That's your cue_! Meggie thought nervously.

I don't know why I got so scared then. I completely froze. I couldn't do it. My legs wouldn't move, not to run away or to show myself. I couldn't face her. Meyer scared me. She wrote, and things happened. It was just too strange a thought. And that's coming from a vampire. Even the thought of Bella... Okay. For Bella it was. I took a deep breath, quite unnecessarily. I stepped out from behind a tree, just when the lady was starting to get annoyed and Meggie was about to try to drag me over. Stephenie's eyes went wide. Then she started laughing. She caught her breath and stared.

"That's amazing! You look exactly like I pictured Edward to look. You were right, I did want to see this. You've brightened my day!" she exclaimed.

_The things fans do..._she thought.

"Mrs. Meyer, he really is Edward. Truly. You have to believe me!" Meggie pleaded. I could tell that Stephenie thought we were just some more obsessed readers. I began to speak.

"Please, Mrs. Meyer, do not laugh. The girl speaks the truth."

_Edward. Really. Some people just don't understand the meaning of fiction_.

On a whim, I answered her thoughts. The original scheme was to answer some questions about myself, but this would more dramatic.

"Mrs. Meyer, I believe I know the exact meaning of fiction, although I certainly understand that my presence is a hard concept to grasp. Now, we would like to talk to you."

It wasn't as easy to make her understand as I first thought. She was thinking that it was just a strange coincidence, but kept that to herself.

"So you mind read?" she asked with a small smile.

_I wonder if he thinks he's clever. I would have obviously been thinking that then. Just for the fun of it though... Hello, Edward._

"Hello, Mrs. Meyer. And mind reading isn't clever, but useful in this situation. Will you please listen to us now? We've been standing out here for a while, Meggie's shivering."

She was scared now. No, more than that. Terrified_. He can't be real! It's not possible! I just wrote a story..._

As to not frighten the poor lady further, I didn't answer her thoughts. 

_That was an interesting veer from the plan, Edward. Let's hope she isn't frightened to the point of not wanting to help us. That would be bad._ Meggie stated in her thoughts.

We were guided silently into Meyer's living room, wondering what would happen next.


	5. Chapter 6

****

Chapter 6

The poor lady looked quite perplexed now. We sat down on the couch, and it sank down slightly under us. After about ten minutes of uninterrupted silence, Meggie spoke.

"Are you okay, Mrs. Meyer? It's quite a shock, I know. We kind of need to talk to you about something, but if you're not up to it yet..."

Stephenie sat unspeaking for a few moments. With my acute hearing, I heard her mutter, "How... how...?". When she moved her gaze towards us, I realized that she actually wanted her question answered.

"So... anybody going to explain?"

I turned to Meggie. She could clarify it better than I could, as I only grasped the main points. Meggie realized that she would be the one to talk, and began to tell us how this came to be.

"Well, basically, I can read things out of books. When I say the words on a page aloud, they bring to our realm something, and into their world goes something from here. I was reading your book, _New Moon_, and Edward came out of it. He didn't even really understand, at first, either. And to get him back home, we would need you to write an excerpt about him. About Edward being somewhere in Forks, and you would have to describe it well. That's all we came here to ask you about."

"Mrs. Meyer," I added, "She read me from a different world. I do not exist in your Washington, don't worry."

Stephenie sighed, not as worried anymore. I smiled at her thoughts.

"Well, that's a relief! I thought... well..." she stuttered. I smiled wider, then told Meggie what Meyer had thought.

"Mrs. Meyer here thought that she had written about the life of a being that actually lived in her world. She was a bit frightened. A lot frightened."

The poor lady looked down, embarrassed. Then, she suddenly realized something and looked up at me quickly. I listened to her thoughts to understand.

_He's from New Moon! Which part though? Hmmm..._

"Meggie? Do you mind telling Stephenie what part of the book I am from? She would love to know."

__

Could you **stop** that, Edward? I can speak for myself, you know. And, yes, I know that you can't stop entirely, but at least let me say things myself.

Stephenie started talking aloud, for Meggie's benefit. "It's okay, I don't really need to know."

Meggie looked confused. "Why don't you want to know?" Then she seemed to understand. I had been trying to ignore thoughts after Mrs. Meyer's annoyed statement, but this one practically screamed at me.

_HE COMES BACK!!_

So there it was. Final proof that I would have given in. What would I have come back to? In fact, the real question is, what _will_ I come back too? Would Bella accept me back? I noticed that it didn't hurt as much to think her name now. But, in response to my questions, there was still another book. There _must _be more to our story. But why can't I get myself to fully believe that?

I sighed, then happened to look over at the clock. Dustfinger expected us to be back at our hotel by noon. It was twenty 'till, now.

"We should be going soon. Someone is waiting for us. Mrs. Meyer, may we resume this conversation at another time?" I looked over at the author, and through her thoughts, she told me that it would be fine.

"So..." Meggie began, "since I can't hear people's thoughts, can you two maybe make noise telling me what's going on?"

Stephenie answered her, telling her the time we could meet back here tomorrow. She then swiftly stood up and showed us to the door.

"All I can say is... that was strange." I told Meggie as soon as we left the woman's yard.


	6. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

We rushed into the hotel lobby, running a few minutes late. I could have truly run much faster, but to appear normal, I only ran as fast as Meggie did. In the lobby, we passed by a family, with two siblings who were fighting with each other. I caught only a little bit of it, as I obviously had other things on my mind.

"You're in love with Eddddwwwaaarrddddd!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"No, he's got Bella! I like Jasper, silly!"

I stopped. Meggie looked behind at me. I was staring at the two children, and I wondered just how much this world knew about my family. For this girl didn't seem to know much about Jasper. And there was also the fact that this person could know more about my life than me, because she had read on, found out what had happened in my distant future. The girl, who had dark brown eyes just like my angel's, started to notice my gaze.

_Wow, he looks just like Edward… But of course, I can connect anything to those books…_

I had to do something, for I just couldn't leave it be. I stepped closer, and said to them, "But of course, Jasper loves Alice, Kendal…"

They both stared at me, the girl with eyes wide and wondering, the boy with frightened hazel. I walked away swiftly, feeling their gaze still following. Meggie was quite confused.

"I'll tell you later," I whispered, just loud enough for her human senses to perceive.

When we got up to the room, Dustfinger looked up from his apparent contemplation of the coffee table.

"I thought that you had been kidnapped by that woman, you took so long!"

I sighed, and sat down. "Well, we're going back tomorrow."


	7. Chapter 8

****

Chapter 8

The next day, my author was much more used to the idea that her character came to life. Well, as used to it as you can get. She was much calmer, and her thoughts were composed. As we walked up her porch to ring the doorbell, she was writing down a list of questions to ask me. She heard us, and scrambled to the door.

"Hello, Meggie. Hello, Edward. Come on in."

We sat down on her couch, and she followed us in. Suddenly, she got up, exclaiming, "Oh!" and ran off to get the list she had been working on.

I looked around the room, having not paid it much attention before. It was themed in green, and everything, from the sofa to the rug, was a different shade of the color. There was a rather large window, and a desk filled with papers.

Mrs. Meyer came back in the room with a pad of paper and a pencil. She sat in the same chair as she had before, then cleared her throat, signaling that she was about to begin.

"Okay, now. I created a few questions that I need cleared up. I need clarification on the passage I'm supposed to write. What is it supposed to be about?"

"Um… well, just a little description of someplace where Edward could be. It doesn't need to be much. Just describe… him in the meadow, maybe? And make sure to include his name. All I need is probably a short paragraph."

"Oh. That basically takes care of all my questions, then. Hmmm… I guess I could start now… If you guys wouldn't mind."

I interjected then, seeing as Stephenie wanted us to go, and Meggie was about to bombard her with a fan's many questions. "We'll go now. Right, Meggie? She has to work now. Goodbye, and thank you for your help."

We left quite quickly, but even as we were at the door, we could hear her computer clicking away.

I spent the walk to the hotel wondering. I was wondering what would happen if I read the books. Wondering if it would help, or hurt. If I would accomplish anything by seeing everything from Bella's perception. It still was a quite intriguing idea, seeing how her mind, AM to my FM reception, worked. By the time I realized we were away from the writer's house, Meggie and I had gotten back to the hotel. I walked into our hotel room, and noticed _the_books, all laying spread out on the counter. I glanced at them speculatively. Dustfinger noticed.

"Wouldn't do that if I were you. It's horrible to know what would have happened."

I looked at them again, then looked at Dustfinger.

"What could be wrong with reading the ones that have already occurred? If they've already happened, what about that?"

I, of course, had already come up with many different answers to my question. It still would be interesting to have his take on it.

He just looked at me with eyebrows raised. His look and mind both told me that he knew I had reasons not to. I sighed, started to turn away, then went back.

"I just have to take this," I explained. "Whether I read it or not." With that I left the room, Twilight in hand.


	8. Chapter 9

****

Chapter 9

I walked into the lobby, not for any particular reason, and sat in a chair. The book the confusing mystery of a thing, was laying on my lap. A family walked by, and I was reminded of the girl with her family, the one who had read my book. At that precise moment, I saw her again. She was with two other young girls her age, one with dark black hair, and another with blond. Their parents didn't look happy about their children's obsession. They were all giggling furiously. I delved into the girls' minds, and found that they were talking about Eclipse.

"I can't believe she called you a space heater! That's just too bizarre!"

"I know! It's like she's Alice or something!"

"Except for the werewolf thing, yeah."

I realized that I had no clue what they were talking about. I wanted to find out more about these books. The young child saw me then. She started whispering to her friends, "Look. There he is. The guy I told you looked like Edward. He even knew about Alice…"

"He does not. Edward looks so different!" I smiled.

I got up from my hard, uncomfortable chair and walked over near them. I decided to talk to their parents, since they were probably brought up to not talk to strangers.

"Excuse me, madam. My sister's birthday is coming up. She said she wanted a book, and I thought of Twilight, but I don't know if she'll like it. What is it about?" The lady I addressed looked quite startled. "Umm… ask them," she stuttered, pointing to her kid and that group. The brown hair one was shrinking away, her only thought being for her mother to stop. Another, with blond-colored hair, spoke up.

"Oh! It's such a great book! And there's Edward, and his true love, Bella. And-"

The other one then cut in. "And Jasper, and Alice."

The one whose name was Kendal divulged the only useful information. "Twilight is about a girl who falls in love with a vampire with golden colored eyes," I was glad mine were black at the moment, "who only drinks animal blood. Then evil vampires find them, and Edward saves her. Then they spend a happy summer together. Then, in New Moon, on Bella's birthday-"

I stopped her then. I didn't want to hear the story again. I had lived it, I had heard it told by Meggie, and I _wasn't_ going to listen to it anymore. "You told me all I needed to know about Twilight. Thank you, though, for your help." Then I walked away. I had learned this: If I did read the books, I'd skip New Moon.


	9. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Nights seem to last forever while waiting for the morning. Especially with Twilight in my hand. I laid on one of the couches in our hotel room, unsure whether to read. As the sun began to rise, I decided that I should ask Stephenie. She knew my world well, and could help. She obviously knew Bella well, to write a book from her point of view. Dustfinger walked in, yawning, his mind not even fully working yet.

"Oh. Hello. Sorry, went wrong way." He staggered out, then turned and asked drowsily, "Did you read it?" His thoughts had awoken though, much more than he pretended.

_I'm a coward. Even he was able to read his fate, yet I wasn't._

"Don't worry, Dustfinger. I couldn't either."

__

Am I able to at least have the privacy of my mind, Edward? Please?

I sighed and mumbled, "Sorry."

For what was the 1298th time, (I had counted) I looked at the book. It's shiny, black cover mocked me, taunted me. I knew that to stay sane, I would have to put the book down. Yet, it stayed in my hands. I just couldn't leave it. I stared at it for a while, and by the time I tore my gaze from it, Meggie and Dustfinger had gotten ready, and we needed to go to Mrs. Meyer's house. I kept the book in my jacket, and we left.

__

I wonder why he's so quiet? He spent the entire morning looking at that.

And night, I added silently.

"I am fine, Meggie. Just… ready to go home."

We reached the little house, where Stephenie waited. She was jittery, having finished her short piece and waiting for us. When we rang the doorbell, she almost tripped rushing to the door.

"Hi, guys. I was up all night, but I finished! Come in, come in." We walked into the living room, our unofficial meeting place.

__

I hope they like it…

"Well, here it is…" she held out a piece of paper. The ticket back to my one and only home. Meggie reached out for it. She looked it over, and when she was done, handed it to me. I reached out cautiously, and pulled it back to look at. It was… plain. I don't know what I expected, but certainly, something different. I handed it back to Meggie.

"So, tell me again. What is it that you are going to do with that?" Stephenie asked.

"I'm going to read it aloud." Meyer looked skeptical.

"Can I watch? I want to see what is so special about your reading."

"Okay…"

"When are you going to do it?"

"Umm… now I guess. Okay with that, Edward?"

I was startled. I had expected to have time here.

"Can I ask Stephenie something?"

"Sure, Edward."

Stephenie looked at me. I looked at the carpet. I heard her thoughts rushing.

_What could possibly make him want to wait? _Then a sudden burst of intuition struck her.

"Edward, I don't think she'd like that." Stephenie held the same expression of pity that Dustfinger had had when we first met.

"What if…"

"It won't help you, to know anything."

Meggie was looking at us, confused. "Is anyone going to tell me? I can't read minds, you know." I just shook my head. "No, it was nothing. Will you just tell Dustfinger that I am just as much of a coward as him?"

"What? What's that supposed to mean?"

"He'll know. Now just read."

Meggie sighed. "Fine."

She began to read. Yet, what she was doing couldn't accurately be described as reading. She brought her words to life. Every sound was poetry. I imagined that all the things she described were real, almost feeling the breeze she was illustrating. I closed my eyes and just listened. When, finally, all I could hear was the chirpings of some small birds, I opened my eyes. I was in my meadow. I remembered the day that I brought Bella here. Then I remembered the reason I was here now. I ran as fast as vampirically possible, rushing to Bella's house. I wondered how she would take it if I climbed through her window, or what she would think about me coming back. I knew from Meggie's memories that she had missed me, to say the least. I smiled at that, but still grimly acknowledged that I was the cause of all that pain. I would never leave her again!

Once I got nearer to Bella's house, I could hear Charlie talking on the phone with one of _them_, one of the older werewolves.

"Yes, Bella's out with some friends. She's so much better with Jake around. She actually talks to people…" I saw in Charlie's mind what Bella had looked like before, and I doubled over silently. She had looked so dead… I had to make things better.

I decided to wait silently in her room for Bella to come back. Her scent permeated her walls, and I expected to feel blood lust, but the thought of not ever seeing Bella again repulsed me to the point of insanity, and I knew I could never harm her again. I knew that even when I was a monster, raving, filled with the want for blood, that my entire being would shy away from such torture as I had endured.

Charlie started to wonder what was taking Bella so long. I was too. I figured that he wouldn't take it so well, if I appeared and asked where Bella was. But I found that Bella was going to a movie recently playing. I snuck back out Bella's window. The closest movie theater was in Port Angeles, so I ran there. Bella and Jessica were coming out of the theater, Jessica chattering away with Bella pretending to listen. Bella looked horrible; she had dark circles under her eyes and looked brittle and broken. I had done this to her. I had hurt her so much, there was no way this angel could ever want me. Some small part of me was amazed and almost happy that she cared about me this much, but the thought of her pain was much more overwhelming. I had planned on just stepping out and meeting her the moment I could, but I held back. Something about this setting didn't make me eager to surprise her, given that it was dark and I would probably just scare her. I followed Jessica's car to Bella's, and ran alongside it. The wind felt exhilarating. I could enjoy it for once, because Bella was near me.

Then, of all things to happen, my cell phone rang. I had forgotten about it, and I guess I didn't have service across universes. The thought struck me as strange. I looked at the caller id to find that it was Alice.

"Hello?"

I heard a squeal on the other end of the line.

"Yay! I always knew you would go back to her! It was just a matter of time. But, the real reason I'm calling you is this: for a while, I couldn't see your future. It was strange… And I tried a million times! So whatever happened, tell me once you get back home. We'll all be waiting for you."

"Yes, I know you love to be proved right. Now, I have something to attend to, if you'll let me." I snapped the phone shut before she could reply.

The car was much farther ahead than before, and so I sped to catch up with it. My phone rang again. I decided to keep running while holding the phone this time. It was Alice again.

"There's going to be a car crash soon. I suggest you stop it, if you want Bella alive," Alice said in a chilling monotone. I snapped the phone shut, denting it in the process.


	10. Chapter 11

****

Chapter 11

I could see the car that was swerving over into our lane. I tried to figure out quickly the best way to stop this. It would be difficult to keep anything inhuman a secret with Jessica in the car, though all I could think of at the moment was to get Bella out. So, as the approaching car veered into the right lane, I opened the door and grabbed the two girls from behind, dashed out of the way of the car, and set the girls lightly on the ground. I knew that by human standards, that had happened fleetingly, and the most they would have seen of me was my hands. I ran into the shadows of the trees by the side of the road to watch the proceedings.

"What just happened?!" shouted Jessica, looking around blankly. The two cars were crushed, the driver screaming, and no other cars on the road. The person in the other vehicle was bleeding, but I paid him no attention.

"I think we just flew out of your car when we hit the other car…" said Bella. She was looking around too, but without the incomprehension that Jessica had. She was intently trying to find something. _Me. _

"But, we're unharmed! It's impossible! And we had on seatbelts, so how could we go flying? This isn't right…"

"Seatbelts don't help that much, I guess. And we're just really lucky. Now, we need to get help. Do you have a cell phone, Jessica?"

"Yeah. It's new, see? Brand new. I got it just a few days ago-"

"Okay, just call."

Jessica walked towards the wreck, holding her phone in hand. Bella got up from her position to walk closer to the woods, and I heard her whisper one word. "Edward?"

I wanted to scream, "I'm here!" but knew that that would ruin my efforts of not showing Jessica. I did, though, in return, whisper her name back to her.

"Bella."

She heard me and smiled, but then the smile on her face disappeared. She looked down, with a depressed expression, then walked back towards Jessica. I couldn't understand what was wrong with her. She must have heard me, but she seemed so unhappy. Meggie never _had_ read to the part where I had come back. I knew for sure that there was another book. More to come in the series. For those, Bella couldn't just push me away. She couldn't, right? Unless, maybe the books did stay the same, and my life would not be exactly like them. I was glad I had taken Twilight instead of the others, because I was sure it had happened.

I walked towards Bella's house, all the time thinking that she must hate me, that she had gotten over me. It couldn't be right, but yet I worried that it was. If I had only never left, none of this would have happened. If only I had never existed…

But I had. Therefore, I must fix things. I came upon her house, and only her light was on. Hurrying over to her window, I began to ascend.


	11. Chapter 12

****

Chapter 12

Bella was sitting on her bed crying, when I came in. Her tears flowed fast as rain. Her eyes were red and I wanted nothing more than to comfort her, but I wasn't sure if she would wish for me there. She was turned away from me, facing the wall.

"Bella?" Her sobs intensified. I couldn't believe that she was like this, or that I had allowed this to happen.

"Bella, please, stop crying. Please?" She sniffled, then ceased.

"Bella? Turn around." She stiffened, then did as I asked. At the sight of me her taut muscles loosened, but she burst out into tears. I came over and sat down next to her, edging closer to her, waiting for her to push me away. She suddenly flew towards me and enveloped me with her scent. She still was unspeaking, but embraced me in a brittle grip.

"Bella?"

"Edward?" she mumbled, as if unsure of her own voice.

"I'm here, Bella."

She looked up at me, her eyes glistening. There was an indecipherable expression on her face.

"You saved us tonight, didn't you?" she questioned.

"Yes, Bella."

I searched her eyes for any clue about her strange reaction to my rescue, but their depths held no answers. Their deep brown depths just mocked me, showing how easily she should have been read.

"Bella, what are you thinking?" I knew she would edit, that I would only get a small portion. It was enormous compared to the days I had spent without even seeing her, however.

"I'm thinking… that you can't be real. That I'm just hallucinating, and I'll wake up soon," she blurted out.

"Wake up? That's laughable." She just looked away, apparently trying to hold back tears.

"Do you want to wake up?" I waited anxiously for an answer, trying to keep a calm appearance. I didn't want her to think that she had to say no, just to please the nightmare before her. I nonetheless wanted her to say no to my question. It was her next sentence that would decide my fate.

Seconds past. Maybe days, for all I knew. I was watching her carefully, waiting for a sign that she had gotten over me. Tears were sliding steadily down her cheeks now. She must have moved on. The sweet angel that she was, she would probably be reluctant to say anything. I keep sitting here, while she cried.

I would certainly be fine with sitting here always. If it would work, I would beg and plead for hours, spending the next decade on my knees. It wouldn't work, though. I could tell by her tears.

"Does it matter if I want to or not? I'll wake up anyways." Maybe there was some hope after all.

"It matters. A lot. Please answer?"

"But you know the answer already! I'll always want you, whether you want me or not. But I know how this dream ends."

"Bella. Silly Bella. I will love you forever. After every time I said that, and the one time you believe me is only an utter deception. How could you have thought that? After everything?"

"It was stupid to believe that you could ever love somebody as boring and ordinary as me. I knew that. And it's not like you're much different than the rest of the dreams. Apparently, I'm uncreative too."

I was perplexed by the way she spoke of herself. As if she didn't know she was beautiful, imaginative, and most certainly interesting. I don't think it's possible not to see it when you're perfect.

"Can you not see yourself at all? You're not at all boring or ordinary! You're wonderful." I smiled sadly. "And unquestionably in need of some sleep." I hummed her lullaby until she slowly drifted off. She fell on top of the covers. I carefully pried the blanket from under her and put it on top of her sleeping figure. I watched her sleeping peacefully for about an hour, then she started to sleep-talk.

"Edward…" she mumbled in her sleep, not at all like the first time she had said my name at night.

"Edward, no!"

"EDWARD!" she screamed, waking herself. I was amazed that Charlie hadn't come rushing at the sound. He just rolled over in bed.

Bella was sobbing into her pillow. It was a heartbreaking noise.

"Shhh… Bella, I'm here. Don't cry. Please, angel, don't cry."

She peeked out from her blanket and looked at me.

"You're… You're really here, aren't you?"

Yes, and always will be. What happened in your dream?"

"You left."

"Oh." "

I held her in my arms while she trembled, fighting off the horrors of the dream.

"You're… you're really here. Why?"

I realized that I didn't have a plausible answer to that. I mean, 'I went to a different world, and there we are a work of fiction, so a girl named Meggie told me through her thoughts what an idiot I am for leaving you' doesn't quite fit.

"I love you. I missed you, and I found out that you had missed me too. So I came back."

"You mean Alice told you?"

My phone, which amazingly had survived when I had dented it, rang. I looked at the caller ID, which said 'Alice'.

"You're clairvoyant, now?" I asked Bella, then answered my phone.

"Yes, Alice?"

"I just wanted you to know, now that you're not busy with dealing with a car crash, that a few days before you came back to her, you have some explaining to do. Like, why your future disappeared four days ago, and Bella's keeps vanishing and reappearing too. I don't think it's my visions, everyone else I can see perfectly. And I've called the family to tell them, so we'll be home tomorrow."

"Okay, Alice. Bye."

I carefully closed the phone.

Bella looked at me with a panicked expression. I could hear her heart racing, and her fingers were clenched together.

"What happened?"

"Alice was calling about the fact that our futures keep disappearing. Well, mine not as much. Why would yours be?"

"That was it?"

"Yes, and I'd like to know why yours is blanking out for her."

"I don't know," she said, mystified. I could tell from her blank look that she was telling the truth.

"I really have no clue. Why's yours?" I struggled for a moment before deciding that I would tell her my story.

"I know this will sound strange, but I assure you, it is all true." I proceeded to tell her what had happened, but edited out the fact that I had the book with me. For some reason, I didn't want her to know about it. I still wasn't sure if I wanted to read it or not, but I knew that if I told her about it, she would surely forbid me to read it. Being the coward I was, I opted to hide it from her until she might have forgotten my story.

From the moment I started an explanation of how we were allegedly fictional, she laughed, a sound like glorious bells. She quickly sobered up, though, and was quiet for a few seconds.

"Bella?"

She looked up at me and solemnly asked, "You didn't read the books, right?"

"Not one." The weight of the book I had concealed inside my jacket suddenly felt much heavier.

"Good. I like having the privacy of my own thoughts."

I knew it now. The way she said it, as if I had taken a great weight off her thoughts, made it almost physically impossible for me to read Twilight. To hurt her any more than I already had would be inexcusable.

I worked my way through the rest of the narrative, and Bella was a perfect audience. I found myself ending with almost a direct quote of Meggie's.

"Well, it's just as likely as vampires, isn't it?" Bella smiled, and I knew that I would stay with her forevermore.

**One more chapter left. I'd like to know if Edward should read Twilight, or what parts he should read, 'cause I'm at a loss for ideas. **


	12. Epilogue

****

Epilogue: Many Years Later

I took one last sweeping glance around my room. Almost everything was in a box, packed away to move on to our next house. There were at least five boxes full of my CDs, one box full of Bella's pictures, boxes full of useless junk, and so much more. We hadn't packed much clothing, and Alice was looking forward to buying us new outfits.

I couldn't believe it. We finally were going back to Forks, the place I first met Bella. I remembered her first day at school as easily as if it had happened a mere two seconds ago. The way she smelt, the way she had agonizingly tortured me. Bella said that Forks was hard to recall, that she only had memories of me, and that it was rainy. I knew that some of those memories of me would be of the time she spent alone when I left. Sure, she may have forgiven me, but I had yet to forgive myself.

"Isn't it amazing? We'll get to go back to our meadow! And, maybe if I'm there, I'll remember more of my human life. It's so frustrating not knowing about my own life. Still, maybe this will help…" said a voice coming up behind me.

I turned around to face my wife. She looked breathtaking, almost impossibly beautiful. She could rival every vampire for splendor, and every human she met would stop in their tracks. I had to deal with a very annoying body of students at school, each thinking about her. At first, I had thought jealously was just a human emotion, but I felt it every day.

"Another school. Another year. We'll only be able to stay a few years, though."

"Yes, but where we fell in love!"

"Of course, it does hold many memories."

Bella pouted at this. "I wish I knew them."

"I've told you everything I remember, Bella."

"I know. Sorry for whining. You really don't care about your human life?"

"It didn't have you in it."

Bella smiled. It was times like these, though, when I wished she could blush. She grabbed a few boxes and left to put them in our hover car. I followed behind with an unlabeled box. The taped up cardboard broke, and a few shirts and a book fell onto the floor. I picked up the black hardback with its silver lettering, struck with an idea.

"Bella?" I called out.

I was answered with a replying "Yes?" from downstairs.

"I have an early Christmas present for you!"

Wary footsteps came up the stairs. Bella never had gotten used to receiving presents, though I told her that since she was a part of this family, it was just like using her own money. I had almost thought that she wouldn't accept the ring when I proposed to her.

"Christmas isn't for a five months, Edward. Why, what is it?"

I held out the book for her to see. She looked at it curiously, then took it from me.

"A book?"

"A solution to your dilemma. Read it!"

She opened to the beginning, then with an incredulous gasp, looked at me.

"What is this?"

"Do you recollect the time I told you about the world where we were fiction?"

She gasped again, then glared at me in a furious way.

"You said you hadn't read it! Oh no… You mean, you knew all my thoughts when _I _didn't?"

"I haven't read it, I promise. I kept it as a memoir of my trip, but now it has a better use. I just can't believe I didn't think of it before!"

"Really?"

"Truly."

Bella dropped onto the floor right where she had been standing and flipped to the first page. I watched as she turned pages, absorbed in each word. The rest of the family had started to wonder what was taking us so long when Bella laughed.

"What? What is it?" Bella shook her head in response. I just had to know what had happened, whether she was laughing at me, or herself, or Mike, and whether it was a joyous laugh, or a 'laughing at someone' laugh. I wished at that moment that I had read her book. It would be so amazing to see what she actually had thought of me.

Emmett came upstairs then. "Aren't you guys coming?" He looked at Bella, confused, then up at me for an answer.

he thought.

What's that book, why is she reading it now, and WILL you hurry?

"Later," I mouthed.

_No, NOW! Everyone's waiting! What's so special anyway? She has the rest of all time to finish it._

I sighed. "Bella, can you close your life's story for a moment and read it on the way there?"

I watched her peruse her book for 10 more seconds, then she groaned and got up.

"Fine."

_Life story?_

"Later!" I whispered.

It took her a few hours to finish, and at one point we had to get out of our car and go into the house in Forks. Every second of her time reading was spent with me sitting next to her. Each minute, my longing to read this story doubled. She laughed, and looked solemn, and about halfway through the book, skipped an entire part. When she put down the book, I immediately started to question her.

"Well? Why were you laughing? Why did you pass over one piece? What was your favorite part? Was it exactly like you remembered? What was your least favorite part? Was that a good present? Do you still love me?" I asked, so many thoughts overwhelming my mind I felt about to disintegrate. At first, she was unspeaking. That was almost as worse than the giggling reading.

"Please? I must know one question's answer."

"I most definitely still love you, silly. I'm glad I got to read it; it was a wonderful gift. And I didn't read the part about the meadow, because I remember that perfectly and don't want anything to spoil my view of it, even though everything else was as far as I know, right. As to my favorite and least favorite section, you're asking this about my life. What is your best and worst parts of life? It's impossible to answer."

"You, and without you. In that order."

"Oh. Well then, mine would be the same. Any questions I didn't answer?"

I took a deep breath. "Only the one I didn't ask yet."

Her shoulders sank, and she looked away from me. There was a long pause in our conversation, in which I immediately knew what her answer would be.

"Well..."

"You won't let me set eyes on its pages, will you?" I said, my voice catching. She didn't want me to know what she thought of me. I knew that all the times she had looked calm, it was all a cover, that really she had been scared of me before. The answer she gave me was much worse than my reading it, for that meant she felt she needed to hide it from me. Though it was hard, I managed to get out, "I'll respect your wishes."

She looked back at me, pleading. "Edward. You must understand! When I was human, I used to blush when I was embarrassed. Think of just how many times I blushed before! I was glad, because I didn't have you intruding on my strange thoughts. Please, Edward.

"Why would you be still hiding them from me now, then?"

"Edward, please! I don't want you to read Twilight."

I sighed, surrendering. "Okay, Bella." She smiled at me.

"Thanks."

I turned from Bella. It hurt me to know that even after all this time, I wouldn't be able to know what she was thinking back then. Her thoughts couldn't have been that horrible.

Night came, and while the rest of my family hunted, I opted to stay at the house.

Bella had asked if I was alright, and I told her I was. They had left wondering if I was okay, each of their minds on me. When everyone had left my range of 'hearing', I ran up to Bella's room.

The terrible book that had caused me so much pain was just laying out in the open. I reached out, hesitant, and touched its spine. After all this, it was in perfect condition. I had a sudden urge to rip it to shreds, or glue its pages together. It had wounded me, so I would just be doing the same thing to it. I knew that I must be going crazy, that it was utterly silly for me to vent my frustration on this book. Oh well.

I brought it down to our newly installed fireplace, and lit a fire in the grate. The orange flames crackled and snapped, weaving through the air. When I placed the book in, it greedily gobbled it up. The black book turned red, then orange again. It burnt to a blackened heap, and I let the fire die down.

"What is that, Edward?" Carlisle crouched down beside me, then laughed. I had long ago told him of this book, of my four days with Meggie and Dustfinger.

"Is this the book Emmett was talking about? Bella's 'life story', as he called it?" He grew solemn. "Had you read it?"

"No," I whispered. "I would have, though."

"Edward?" Bella asked, seeing me with my father. "You didn't take my book, did you? I told you I didn't want you to read it!"

I smiled sheepishly. "I didn't read it." I gestured to the ash remains of Twilight. She stood there shocked for a few moments.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Wow."

I laughed. "I'm sorry, Bella. I had to."

"It's fine, I guess." A few moments later, she began to laugh too.

"I guess that was for the best. It's a good thing I had already read it," she said.

We stood there laughing for an hour or two, then we began to unpack our few belongings.


End file.
